Living in Washington isn’t cheap. Y ou find the proof in the cost of a pint of beer or in the
big bill waiting after a dinner of small plates. That’s why I’m thrilled that two new
nightspots are offering marquee-quality DJs in cool settings with no cover charge in sight.
Den of Thieves
2005 14th St. NW. 202-747-2377.

(Craig Hudson/For The Washington Post) - DJ
Jahsonic spins at Axel F, a retro funk and hip-hop party
in the spacious lounge at RedRocks.

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Over the past two-and-a-half years, the
building next to Marvin has had multiple
personalities. It opened as Blackbyrd
Warehouse, an oyster bar with late-night
movies and DJs, before becoming the
Vietnamese restaurant Hanoi House, which
offered a late-night karaoke bar. That
eventually morphed into a Toki
Underground pop-up restaurant and then a
password-only lounge.
Something about the space never quite jelled
for me — or owner Eric Hilton, who’s best
known as one half of Washington’s famous Recommended

Den of Thieves and RedRocks bring DJ starpower without a cover charge - The Washington Post
DJ duo Thievery Corporation. “I got talked Ted Cruz responds to posters on Twitter
into doing the restaurant thing a few times,
but I always thought, ‘I like this place as a
bar,’ ” Hilton said last month. He kept asking
himself, “Why don’t we put in a permanent
DJ booth and let it be a bar?”

He finally got his wish: It’s now an intimate
lounge called Den of Thieves that keeps
Hanoi House’s dark, sexy vibe but adds topdrawer DJ talent, starting with Hilton himself. Since Jan. 18, he and select friends have
been spinning on Saturday night, and Hilton plans to stay there “until further notice.” His
sets are eclectic, drawing on vintage reggae, funk and Brazilian, arranged with a musician’s
ear. A line forms outside when Hilton’s on the decks — his band can sell out 9:30 Club at the
drop of a beat — but it’s not the only night worth visiting.
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On Fridays, DJ Jahsonic hosts Behind the Line, where the mix of ’70s funk and ’80s R&B
and hip-hop turns the room into a house party. (Skip the line with a password, which you
can get via Twitter, @BehindTheLineDC.) Thursday rocks a little harder — it’s curated by
John Thornley, the singer for local indie group U.S. Royalty — and Sunday is an LGBT
party called Beat, with a stellar lineup of Natty Boom, Keenan Orr and Jazmine joining
Jahsonic on the decks.
There’s not much of a dance floor, so the atmosphere is focused on listening to great tunes
and sipping drinks while talking to friends and doing some serious people-watching. The
cocktail list is reasonably priced: Everything costs $8, from the classic Negroni and daiquiri
to the honey-touched whiskey highball called the Den of Thieves. Beers from Lagunitas and
Bell’s are $6; house wines are $8.
On the right night, you’ll just post up at the bar, drink in hand, and wonder why anyone on
14th Street is waiting in line to get into Marvin.
The lodge at redrocks
1348 H St. NE. 202-621-7300.
www.red rocksdc.com.
If you walk by the H Street RedRocks on a Saturday night, it looks like a classy pizza
restaurant: high ceilings, exposed brick, couples noshing on pies topped with prosciutto and
buffalo mozzarella. But if you climb the stairs, you’ll find a startlingly large dance floor with
its own bar. Head up another flight of steps and you’re faced with a mezzanine looking
down onto the dance floor, a spacious bar and a sizeable rooftop deck. “Y ou watch people,
and it’s like they’re discovering new secret space for the first time,” says Shaun Starkey,
who’s responsible for organizing Friday and Saturday nights, and DJing a fair few himself.
There’s plenty to like: an airy space to get down; great sound; a solid list of beers and wines
starting at $6; and groups of couches if you want to take a breather. This would be just
another recommended weeknight destination on H Street’s crowded strip if Sharkey wasn’t
booking special guests like acclaimed hip-hop MC Talib Kweli, New Y ork mixtape legend
Tony Touch and, this Saturday, Afrobeat and hip-hop party-rocker Rich Medina.
Sharkey got his start as a hip-hop producer in the late ’90s; he worked with Eminem and
Rick Ross before releasing his 2004 debut “Sharkey’s Machine,” which included guest spots
from Jean Grae, Grand Puba and Cannibal Ox. Sharkey says he’s built “personal
relationships” with a lot of artists and DJs, which enables him to ask them to come to
RedRocks without having to go through booking agents.
Then again, Sharkey isn’t just bringing in out-of-towners. He’s leaning on veteran groove
suppliers Stereofaith and Tom Lim, among others. Two weeks ago, he coaxed Liv’s longrunning “jheri-curl funk and champagne soul” retro event, Axel F, over to H Street, with
returns possible.
RedRocks’s dance floor is only full on Friday and Saturday, with Sharkey considering an
expansion to Thursday nights. “H Street is hard to do on weeknights,” he says. After

Den of Thieves and RedRocks bring DJ starpower without a cover charge - The Washington Post

previously booking events for Little Miss Whiskey’s, Tropicalia and Sticky Rice, he may lean
on his rolodex to fill other nights on the calendar.
Next up: Rich Medina, Jahsonic and Sharkey perform Saturday. Doors open at 8 p.m.
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